All Aboard
by Epical
Summary: AU. Kagome is the most tempermental chef in all of Japan. Inuyasha is a cruise ship captain in need of a chef. As they start to befriend one another, fights, laughter and perhaps love? ensues. Afterall, a man's heart is through his stomach.
1. How to Get a Job

**A/N: Yay, new story! I've been really excited about this one so...enjoy! And thank you so much to my beta O-Mega Lead for catching all the nit-picky mistakes and point out the parts that didn't make sense. You've been so encouraging!**

**Hehe, one more thing. Chef Gustav says 'conasse' (it's French) in this chapter. Kudos to anyone who knows what it means!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha, all rights belong to Rumiko Takahashi.

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**All Aboard  
****Chapter One: How to Get a Job**

The kitchen was hell.

Scraps of vegetable flew everywhere, the flames from the state of the art stove burned high. Amidst all this was Kagome Higurashi, the best chef Tokyo had ever seen. She was quickly assembling an order of crab cakes when an annoying ding interrupted her, promptly destroying the asparagus mountain she was working on.

"_What?_" she demanded.

"U-uh, t-the…" a waiter with unruly red hair who looked like he had been soaked in freckles at a young age stuttered nervously as Kagome glared at him. "T-the man at t-table seven s-says his s-steak wasn't r-rare enough."

Kagome's eyes squinted in irritation and her fists clenched angrily. "Not rare enough? If it was any rarer, it'd be sushi!"

Speechless, the waiter eyes widened to saucers as he timidly looked at the livid chef whose face was flushed crimson. Gulping nervously, he placed the order of steak before her with trembling hands, gave her a weak smile and hot footed it out of the kitchen. Looking down at her crab cake order with its failed asparagus pyramid then at the dish of steak, she grabbed a fork and stormed to the storage room.

Two minutes later, Kagome emerged from the kitchen with a red and dripping steak on a fork. Zoning in on the man at table seven, she stormed towards him with a vengeance. Stopping in front of him, she glanced at him disdainfully, slammed the raw steak onto his plate then forcefully yanked the fork out.

"Is this rare enough for you?!?" she grounded dangerously, holding the fork up like a weapon. The man's mouth hung open in shock and he dropped his monocle in the glass of champagne in front of him. Tearing his gaze from the irate chef to look at his now broken monocle then back at the women who made him break it, the stout man stood up.

"Excuse me! This behavior i-is unacc-ceptable! Apologize at once or I will be forced to have a talk with your manager," the man yelled. _'Yes, because I'm terrified of a fat man who measures to be about 5' tall,'_ Kagome thought to herself.

Rolling her eyes she crossed her arms and glared down at the balding man who was currently turning very red. "You kind of people really disgust me, you know that? People work their asses off in the kitchen to prepare your stupid steak only to have you send it back and say it's inadequate. Suck it up princess, the world doesn't revolve around you so just sit your ass down and stop whining."

The man stared at her disbelief and starting shaking his fist repeatedly at her and just as he was about rant to her about her behavior, Kagome cut him short. "You have no idea how much people try to please you yet you never seem to take notice. You look at everyone thinking they're all so below you but if you just take a moment to open your eyes, you'll realize that it's the exact opposite."

Before Kagome could fire some more insults at the man, the familiar voice of her boss interrupted her. "I think that's enough for today. Kagome, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. Your check will be faxed to you tomorrow."

Sighing tiredly, Kagome walked off to the staff room to pack her bags only to hear 'I'm so sorry sir, we'll have you a new steak immediately. This meal will be complimentary of course.'

Shaking her head in disgust, she kicked the door to the staff room ajar, opened her locker and roughly grabbed her belongings. After quickly changing in the adjacent bathrooms, Kagome shook her obsidian locks free of the restraining bun and applied some perfume to rid herself of the smell of food.

Slowly sauntering to her car, Kagome couldn't help but have flashbacks of the scene she had caused. '_When did change from being about the steak to the society I've grown up in?'

* * *

_"I would like to welcome you to the crew of the _Sakura_," a middle aged man in a captain's uniform said with a grin.

"Thank you sir, I promise that you won't regret it," Inuyasha responded and stood up to shake the man's hand. The man nodded and smiled at him. Taking this as a cue, he thanked the captain once more and headed for the door.

Closing the heavy, oak door quietly, Inuyasha leaped up in the air and yelled a victorious 'yes'! Landing neatly on the ground, he looked back at the room he had just left to see if the captain, no, _co-captain_ had noticed his outburst. Letting out a sigh of relief at the closed blinds, he grinned foolishly and started walking to the door with…a bounce in his step?!?

Once outside the cabin the office was held in, Inuyasha excitedly flipped open his modest phone and dialed, frowning when no one picked up. After several tries, a sleepy voice finally answered. "Mmm, h-hello?"

"Miroku! I got the job!!" he enthusiastically said to his half conscious friend, clutching the phone tightly.

"Hmm? What are you talking about? Who is this?"

Rolling his eyes, Inuyasha took a deep breath, trying to calm the adrenaline rush coursing through him and began once more. "It's Inuyasha you prick, and I got the job! You know? The one as the captain of the new cruise ship, the _Sakura_."

"Oh, sounds great," Miroku responded, making the usual effort to sound happy for a friend who had woken him. Translation: he didn't.

However, Inuyasha's current state of high had prevented him from noticing and he went on, regardless of the response he got (or lack thereof). "Yeah, isn't it? It's going to be amazing, being out on the sea for over a month and the places we're going to are incredible! The business is still small but once people catch wind of this, they'll be flocking to us! This is my big break Miroku! ….Miroku?"

There was a pause then finally, an answer. "Yeah I'm still here, hey listen, why don't you grab a pizza or two and we'll have a good ol' chat. Face to face. Then you can tell me all about this captain thing of yours. Hmm?"

Normally, Inuyasha would have never fallen for it but it was different this time. If the only way to get his free loader of a roommate to listen was through food, then so be it. Running to his car, he hastily revved it up and drove off to the nearest pizza place well above the speed limit.

When he arrived at the mediocre apartment him and Miroku shared, his said roommate was already stuffing his face with Chinese takeout while watching a movie marathon of Jackie Chan movies (the current one being Shanghai Noon).

"Wow, you couldn't wait 45 minutes for the pizza so you called for takeout? You're pathetic," he reprimanded, carelessly dropping the pizzas on the hardwood floor.

Miroku had just opened his mouth to speak (consequently rewarding Inuyasha with his half chewed dumplings) when Sango appeared from the kitchen with three beers in her hand. "Actually, I needed a place to crash and eat since my roommate has this family dinner thing tonight."

Nodding, Inuyasha took the Coors from Sango's outstretched hand and popped it open. "Of course, and since Miroku would be willing to let anyone stay as long as they brought food…"

Laughing, Sango grabbed a nearby box of lo-mein and flopped down on the couch beside Miroku. "Oh I'm sorry, would you feel more comfortable talking about me if I was in another room?"

"Meh, wouldn't make a difference," Inuyasha shrugged, which earned him a punch. The easy banter stopped after a while and the three silently ate their food while immersed in the Jackie Chan movie marathon. A half hour passed before the shrill ringing of Inuyasha's phone pierced the air.

Checking the caller id, he leapt up and practically ran to his room to answer it. From the living room, indistinct murmurs of the conversation could be heard and moments later, Inuyasha emerged from the room.

"Who was it?" Sango asked casually.

"It was my new boss."

Stopping in mid bite, she turned to Inuyasha with a questioning look. "Right, I didn't tell you! I got the job as co-captain of that cruise ship I was telling you about. You know, the _Sakura?_"

"Inu, that's great! I'm so proud of you!"

He grinned foolishly at the praise and let out an involuntary blush. "So…what did your new boss want?"

Inuyasha scrunched his nose is distaste. "Well one of the chefs just called in to say that she wouldn't be able to make the cruise because she's getting married. So now I've got the lucky job of finding a new chef, and in less than two weeks at that."

"But still, this is such a great opportunity! Finding a chef shouldn't be too hard, just post an ad in the paper or something," she exclaimed.

"Yeah I guess, but I don't know. Two weeks isn't very long to find a qualified chef and even if I do, he or she has got to be able to pick things up quickly since all the other chefs are familiar with the menu already."

"Cheer up, I'm sure you'll find someone. Just look-" Suddenly, Sango was interrupted by the proverbial sound of her ring tone. "Ugh, sorry, I should take this."

She gave him a sheepish smile and walked over to the kitchen to answer the call. "Hello? Oh, hey Kagome, what's up?"

"Hey Sango, I was just calling to make sure you knew I was having dinner at my parents tonight. That should be a blast," she said sarcastically.

"Hmm, well have fun. So uh…how was your job today?" Sango questioned hesitantly, not sure she wanted to hear the answer.

"Well, uh speaking of that, I don't exactly HAVE a job anymore…" Kagome said, letting out a squeak at the end. This was her third job in two months and she knew Sango would not be happy. Taking a deep breath, she prepared for the worst…but it never came.

"Um…Sango? You there?"

"Actually…I have a proposition for you," Sango finally replied sneakily.

Five minutes later, she had finished explaining. "So are you up for it? Just imagine, a month at sea with no worries of any kind! And they can't exactly fire you in the middle of a cruise now can they? It's perfect!"

"Yeah, it's great Sango except for the fact that I hate the ocean."

* * *

After she hung up with Sango, Kagome drove off to the rich community where her parents lived. It took her ten minutes to reach the prestigious Country Club with its expertly trimmed ivy, majestic brick walls and regularly spritzing sprinklers. Then of course there were the houses, each fit to be deemed a castle. As she rounded a corner, the house where she had spent her childhood came into view.

Slowly driving up to the metal gate that separated her and the looming house that stood before her, Kagome pressed the intercom button on the side. "Hi, it's me, uh Kagome."

"Oh, welcome home Miss Kagome," the accented voice of one of the maids responded and buzzed her in.

Gradually, the metal gate opened and she pulled into the luxurious paved cobblestone driveway. Parking her silver SUV style BMW, a birthday gift from her parents, by the Grecian fountain, she walked to the door. It was opened for her by a maid whom she didn't recognize (her mother fired so many it was hard to keep track) and she smiled politely, slightly uncomfortable.

"Please come in, your mother and father are waiting for you in the dining room. Supper is about to be served."

Nodding courteously, Kagome hoisted her bag up onto her shoulder, fluffed her hair, put on a fake smile and strolled confidently (or what she hoped looked confidently) into the dining room. "Mother, father," she stoically said, bowing her head in respect.

"Sit down Kagome, you're almost ten minutes late as it is," her mother accused while placing her creamy white napkin upon her lap. Gulping nervously, Kagome slid into the seat across from her mother and immediately set her gaze on the fine china, not daring to look up at her.

An awkward silence followed and Kagome fidgeted uneasily while her mother simply sat there and her father read the newspaper. Suddenly the antique doors leading to the dining room were opened and in bustled maids, holding plates of food. Smiling lightly as one placed a bowl of soup before her, she was unaware of the last person that entered the room.

"Kagome! Comment ca va?" a booming voice said.

Turning to look, Kagome's face broke out in a wide grin. "Gustav! Je suis bien, et tu?"

"Bien, bien! It is good to see you haven't forgotten your French," the chef she had grown up with answered.

"Well how could I? If I remember correctly, you refused to teach me how to cook in anything but French," she said, letting out a laugh. Before they could continue their conversation, Kagome's mother cleared her throat loudly glaring at the two.

"Okay, well you enjoy your meal and I hope to see you again soon. Au revoir mon etudiant favori!" And with that, the plump man walked out of the room, quietly muttering about a 'conasse'.

"Well, I'm glad to see that I haven't wasted thousands of dollars on your education for nothing," her mother said icily, silently drinking her soup.

Kagome's face burned and she immediately turned her attention to the miso soup in front of her. The silence in the room was extremely unnerving. It was the kind where you had to _eat quietly_ and _move quietly_ because you didn't want to disturb the silence. Every now and then a comment from her parents about an upcoming event would arise and another to chastise the lack of salt or tenderness in the food.

"So Kagome, where do you work?"

The question caught her unguarded, making her drop her chopsticks. "Um, well I was working Kiyoshi but it uh wasn't working out."

Her mother simply raised her brows in expectance and pursed her lips disdainfully. "Well, have you set up an interview elsewhere?"

"Um, not yet."

Her cheeks were lit aflame with her mother's unforgiving responses. "You're always welcome to work at my company," her father said, looking up from his chicken.

"Yes, what a wonderful idea. At least then you'll have a stable job."

Kagome set her chopsticks on her bowl and folded her hands on her lap, clenching them tightly together. Her jaw was set and her lips in a thin line. "Actually, I was hoping to keep searching in the chef area. It's something that I really like."

Looking up from her food, Kagome's mother plastered a small, fake smile. "Well, if you think that it's best, nobody's stopping you." Returning to her meal once more, Kagome prayed for an end to this torture.

"Have you found a stable boyfriend at least?" No such luck.

"No mother."

Gasping lightly, she spoke again. "I'd be happy to introduce you to some of your father's younger associates. Now there is a good boyfriend. Status, money and respect."

Taking a deep breath then releasing it, she put down her chopsticks for good. There was something about the third degree she was being given that made her lose her appetite altogether. "I'm sure that they're great but I prefer to find someone on my own. You know the saying, love will find you when you're not looking for it."

"Have it your way…darling."

An hour passed and she was finally home free. After more interrogations from her mother, silence from her father's behalf and an uncomfortable attempt at post dinner small talk, Kagome was free to leave. Flopping into her car, she leaned back and sighed loudly. Sloppily pulling out her phone, she punched in the familiar numbers.

"Hello?"

"Hey Sango, is it too late to take you up on that offer?"

* * *

**A/N: I'm still debating on whether or not to enclude MirSan in this story so tell me what you think. If enough people request it, I will try my gosh darn hardest to come up with something more interesting than the usual Miroku gropes, Sango slaps, he confesses his love, happily ever after. Reviews?!?**


	2. How to Cook for Kids

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews, I appreciate them. I think I'm going to be adding a MirSan plot (albeit small) to this story, now all I need is to wait for the plot bunnies to suffocate me with mushy ideas!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha but if Rumiko Takahashi is holding a raffle for him, I'm the one in the red hat.**

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**Things Not Said  
****Chapter Two: How to Cook for Kids**

_'Okay, don't panic. I can do this.'_

"Sango, we need to leave. Right now."

Said girl simply turned to face her friend, "Kagome, if you do not take this job, you life will be a living hell. Not to be rude, but hello? Your parental units? And let's not forget the fact that you can't exactly hold down a job!

Tossing a glance at the huge looming waves of water behind her, Kagome turned a sickly shade of white. "I'll go see a counselor or something!"

"What is so scary about a nice, calming wave of water lulling you to sleep?" Sango pointed out.

"Oh I don't know, why don't you tell me what's so scary about a substance that can kill the whole world in 24 hours if we were all forced to live in it."

Rolling her eyes, Sango pushed Kagome towards the ship where she was to stay in for the next month. The ship itself was stunning, even to an amateur's eye. Her gleaming white body towered above its passengers. The subtle accents of mahogany only increased her magnificence. The polished windows gleamed in the sun and the trickle of staff boarding the ship could be seen. Her streamlined shape of a sharp angled bow and stern gave a glimpse of her power and performance.

Smiles, laughter and some tears could be witnessed among the crowd. The different colors of luggage that people brought on the ship created a contemporary rainbow while the number of suitcases varied in number. But the one thing everyone had while boarding the ship was a smile. A smile of anticipation of what was to come, of the adventures they were sure to face. Everyone except Kagome.

"Sango, I really don't think this is a good idea. I mean, I wasn't even properly interviewed!" she protested, in a final attempt to prolong the inevitable.

"Yeah, I know. I still can't believe Inu blew off the interview to go to that basketball game! But whatever, I know you'll do great."

"Sango! Did you not just hear me? I didn't get interviewed. What if they hate me? What if I get fired and I have to swim back to Tokyo?!?" Kagome's face was sheet white now and she had started shuddering despite the boiling temperature.

Sighing tiredly, Sango ushered Kagome up the steps leading to the ship. "Don't worry Kag, you're a great chef. And you still have two days before the passengers actually board the ship which will give you plenty of time to settle in!"

Sango followed up her motivational pep talk with an optimistic smile. She looked at Kagome expectantly for some type of enthusiasm but received none. Sango's head flopped back in disappointment. "Nothing?!? You must be at least a little bit excited!"

Kagome raised her eyebrows in disbelief. "Fine, be that way! This is only our last time of actually seeing each other before you take off and sail for a month."

Kagome crinkled her nose. Soon, she gave up trying to cheer her unrelenting friend up and went on to try and make her look presentable. She pinched Kagome's pale cheeks to try and get some sort of color back into them. Sango finger combed the wavy obsidian she had always envied and straightened up the classic white shirt and cardigan that she had insisted Kagome wear.

"Well you look good so really, that's half the battle. Now go on! I'll miss you!"

Giving Sango a weak hug, Kagome stumbled up the steps to the ship. Too caught up in not throwing up and running away, she didn't even hear what Sango was telling her.

* * *

Forty-five minutes had passed and she hadn't felt any better. After settling in her surprisingly spacious room, it was all she could do to try and focus on breathing calmly. However, the racket of people shuffling about wheeling suitcases and the suffocating sea air made it impossible. It had come suddenly but she had been prepared. Retching out her breakfast, Kagome stood over the toilet gagging while holding her long hair back.

She didn't get much time too recover since the captain had sent crew members to come and gather most of the staff into the eating area. Rinsing her mouth of the bitter aftertaste, she popped a mint in her mouth and briskly walked out of the room. When she got to the designated spot, most of the people had already arrived and the slightly graying captain was about to give orders.

"Alright, chefs this is a challenge for you. I realize that you've worked together briefly during the practice dinners and it will be hard at first to be accustomed to each other so this activity is to prepare you for the task ahead. Each chef will be randomly paired with a inexperienced staff member and will be given 45 min to prepare a meal. Together. I will be watching closely to see that you are doing equal amounts of work and whoever wins gets $50, each. There are six stations and six sets of identical ingredients. Equipment is first come first serve basis. A panel of judges will be judging the food so make enough for five."

Smiling lightly to herself, Kagome felt herself growing calmer. Cooking was something she could do, something that had always made sense to her. Certain amounts of each ingredient, however unexpected it was could be thrown together and make a beautiful dish. The exact opposite of real life.

She was soon paired up with her partner, a striking youkai named Kouga. At first glance, Kagome could tell he was charming. His sleek jet black hair was pulled into a high ponytail, piercing ocean blue eyes sparkled with mischief and his lips were tugged into a smirk, revealing the tips of pearly white fangs. When she was caught staring, she quickly looked away, trying to look nonchalant (but it would have been impossible to miss her red cheeks that were set afire with embarrassment).

She heard someone beside her clear their throat and against her better judgment, looked. "Hey, I'm Kouga."

She smiled shyly. "Um, I'm Kagome. Nice to meet you."

He grinned reassuringly back at her as if he could sense her nervousness (which he probably could since she was fidgeting) and turned back to listen to the captain.

"Now, before we start, are there any questions?"

Kagome waited patiently for someone to ask the obvious question at hand. She scanned the crowd for a raised hand but there were none. With no choice, she took the plunge. "Yes, you in the gray sweater."

All eyes automatically zoomed into her, making Kagome feel very self conscious. _'Did her hair have weird kinks in it? Was her fly done up? Did she look deathly pale?'_ Pushing her doubt aside, she timidly answered. "Who will be the judges?"

Smiling in an amused but impressed way, the captain answered. "Good question. Tom, bring the judges out please."

Everyone's attention suddenly turned to the doorway and in ran five children. "Ladies and gentlemen, these will be your judges. Now if there are no more questions, let us begin!"

* * *

The kitchen shuffled to life as the chefs ran around grabbing their ingredients but Kagome stood her ground. She snatched two aprons off a hook, put one on then motioned for Kouga to wear the other one. He awkwardly shrugged into the apron that was too small for his frame.

"Okay so these are kids we're cooking for. We want them to enjoy the food but at the same time have a nutritional factor," she paused and looked at her partner for understanding and he knowingly nodded. "The other chefs will probably we whipping up five star restaurant dishes but we want to keep it simple. For a good source of omega-3 fatty acids we can make fried salmon filets. Then there's macaroni which can be a good source of protein if we use low-fat cheese and whole grain pasta for the fiber. Lastly we'll slice up some strawberries and sweeten them with Splenda for the vitamin c."

Kouga nodded excitedly and the two headed for their set of bountiful ingredients. Kagome took a basket and starting throwing fresh salmon, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cornstarch, milk, butter, cheddar cheese, tortellini, strawberries and some sugar and salt in. Once finished they spread out the ingredients and separated them according to the recipe.

"Why don't you boil some water for the pasta first? I can start slicing the salmon," Kagome offered.

Nodding, he turned out the stove, filled a pot with water and placed the lid on for it to boil. When he went back to where Kagome was, she had already cleanly sliced five salmon filets and had grabbed several more ingredients. Too focused in transferring the salmon from the counter to the awaiting dish, she knocked over the bottle of salt. By instinct, he reached out and swiped it before it crashed.

Kagome had witnessed all this and was currently staring at his in awe. Embarrassed, he sheepishly smiled. "Uh, you could say you have a slight edge in this whole cooking thing."

She cocked her head in confusion. "I'm a bartender so I uh guess I'm pretty nifty with my hands."

She laughed lightly and replied. "Well aren't I just the luckiest girl in the bunch? Come on, you can measure out the batter for the salmon with your nifty hands while I pour the pasta in the pot and start grating the cheese."

Every so often she would shout out the amounts for the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and powder, salt and sugar that he needed. Once it was all measured out, Kouga sifted it all into a large bowl and Kagome had a combination of eggs and water ready for him.

"So just carefully pour small quantities in and whisk it all together. When you're finished, the batter should be slightly lumpy but that's fine. I'm going to go slice up the strawberries and just call if you need help," she instructed and wiped her hands on her apron.

As he worked on mixing all that together, Kagome sliced the strawberries in even slivers. She put equal amounts in small serving bowls and sprinkled some Splenda on then put them in the fridge to cool. Kouga was finished with his job soon after and she went to examine the batter.

"Did I do it right? I wasn't sure because I thought it might have been too thick and…" he trailed off, nervous of what she'd say.

"No it's great Kouga! You did really well, it's perfect. Kay so I'll baste the salmon in the mixture and you can go drain the tortellini and start adding the cheese and milk. I've measured it all out for you so just add the milk and slowly add the cheese, it'll thicken up. This shouldn't have any lumps," Kagome said while dipping the salmon in the flour and egg mixture.

"Wait but, isn't macaroni made with those bendy noodles? Last time I checked tortellini was a weird U-shape and has stuff inside." Kouga pointed out, befuddled.

"That's true," she acknowledged, "but this is more of a modern twist on it and you can have different colored tortellini which is more fun. Alright, so after I finish basting it, I'm going to deep fry the salmon fillets then set them out so dry on a paper towel so the excess oil can seep through. Once that's done, we just have to plate it and we'll be complete."

Nodding, Kouga cut out a chunk of butter and threw it in the pot. As it melted, he carefully dumped the tortellini in and mixed it with a stirring spoon. Grabbing the measuring cup, he poured the ¾ cup of milk in with the pasta. Slowly, he added the grated cheese, taking extra time to make sure it blended together smoothly.

While he was working on the macaroni, Kagome had finished dipping the salmon in the prepared batter Kouga had made. Starting up the deep fryer, she set out a plate and put several pieces of paper towels across it. Once the fryer was hot and ready, she cautiously put the fillets of salmon in, letting them cook until they were golden brown. Kagome then warily put them on the plate on top the paper towels, washed her hands and went to see how her partner was doing.

"Are you almost finished with that?" she asked, looking over his shoulder into the pot of bubbling macaroni.

"Yeah, I think it's done but you might want to check it over," he said in a slightly triumphant tone. Smiling at him, she took the wooden spoon from his hands and skillfully tossed the pasta around. Satisfied with that, she proceeded to find two spoons and scooped a bit of the melted cheese up. Taking one for herself and giving one to Kouga, she motioned for him to try it.

"Mmm, this is great! Good job Kouga," she appraised and he grinned even harder. "I'm just going to add a little more milk since it might be a tad thick for the kids."

As she was doing this, the captain came around and announced that they had barely five minutes left in the competition. Acknowledging this, Kagome instructed Kouga to continue folding the pasta while she got the plates and bowls.

Reaching the cupboards where these items were stored, she contemplated the plating of their dishes. _'Kids, what do kids like? Should I carve a rose to put beside the strawberries? Maybe some herbs with drizzled dressing on the salmon? Or perhaps a fruit mountain to go along with the strawberries.'_

Shaking her head, she tried to clear her mind. She quickly wracked her head for a list of children friendly plating designs but none came to mind. "You okay?" a voice interrupted, causing her to jump.

"Oh, hey Kouga. Uh yeah, I'm fine, just wondering what kind of plates I should get for the food."

"That's no problem; just grab some colorful plastic bowls and matching plates," he easily responded. "Don't tell me that our professional chef didn't know something a mere bartender like me knew."

Flushing hotly, Kagome looked at the tiled floor. "I-I've just never had kid friendly meals. We had a family chef growing up and my mother was picky about her meals so I guess I've never really learned about this kind of stuff."

Slightly amused he probed further, "You seemed to know quite a bit about cooking for kids though."

"I spent a week just reading kid's cook books after I got my own place, trying to cram the things I had missed as a kid. They had pictures but I was in too much of hurry to ever look at them," she explained in a sheepish tone.

His eyebrow rose in understanding. "Well, allow me then."

Stacking his arms full of bowls and plates, he walked over to where the pasta was waiting. Taking a pasta ladle, he started scooping spoonfuls of the macaroni into the colorful, plastic bowls. Next, he moved on to the deep fried salmon fillets. With a nearby set of chopsticks, he casually placed the fillets upon the crayon colored plates. Once finished, he simply placed the bowl onto the plate and moved them to the counter where they were to be presented. Moving on, he counted out the correct number of spoons, forks and knives, rolled them in Disney themed napkins and set them beside the dishes.

"Aren't you impressed?" he teased.

"Wow, I don't know what to say," she admitted.

Flashing her his perfect set of teeth, he said, "It's okay, I get that a lot. Silent admiration is all I ask."

She laughed at his outgoing personality but then remembered something. "Wait, it's missing something," she said and ran to the fridge.

"There!" she victoriously announced, placing the bowls of strawberries beside the fish and macaroni.

With a minute to spare, the pair talked easily for the remaining time before excitedly presenting their creations to the judges. Two of the other chefs had prepared intricate dishes but with an obvious flaw. They only had that one dish, since it had most likely taken the complete 45min to make. The remaining three had made slightly simpler (but still a fancy restaurant deserving) courses like Caesar salad and filet mignon topped with asparagus. The one thing all meals had in common were the little details most chefs were sure to entail in their cuisine. All except theirs.

"Good job and I hope everyone had fun," the captain began. "I know it must have been frustrating to some of the chefs to work with such inexperienced sous-chefs but that was the point of the game. Now I have walked around and seen the amount or in some cases, lack of teamwork in each pair but let's move on to the tasting. The criteria will be simple; each child will give a thumb up or down to the dish and whichever team has the most thumbs up wins. Let's begin!"

After 40min, all dishes had been tasted and the judges had decided who the winners were. "I am happy to announce that Kagome and Kouga have won the challenge. You showed excellent teamwork and the kids believed your simple and classic were the best. Congratulations! Lastly, photos of the ship crew will be taken by the bow so please meet there!"

Polite applause followed the captain's speech and they were each handed a crisp $50 bill. Bowing her head respectfully, she accepted the money and turned to her partner. She reached out to shake his hand but he had enveloped her in a bear hug. Blushing, she nervously returned the hug, her heart pounding furiously.

* * *

_'Feh! Stupid, fat woman, blaming me for everything! I don't cook, how the hell can she expect me to know all the…cooking terminology?!?' _he angrily thought. "You're doing it all wrong!" he mimicked, recalling his horrible experience with the experienced chef (him being the cooking impaired staff member) he had been paired with for the cooking challenge.

_**Flashback**_

_"Dice the tomatoes and toss them in the salad while I skin the chicken," she grunted at him, motioning at the large, ripened tomatoes._

_Inuyasha, who had lived his years feeding off of ramen, pizza and beer hadn't a rats ass what this beluga whale in front of him was saying. Deciding to do whatever he thought was best, he started cutting the tomatoes in fat chunks and threw them in the salad._

_"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?"_

_"Uh…tossing it?"_

_She had turned beet red at this moment and dropped the 10lb cutting board on her size 12 loafers. She continued to jump around the kitchen in frenzy cursing up a storm. Once she had calmed down, she sent him to wash more lettuce since that was something even an 'ignoramus and half-witted simpleton' like him should be able to do. He had responded with calling her an elephantine McChunky._

_The rest was history._

_**End Flashback**_

Stalking over to where the photos were being taken, he stood thinking about the pair that had won, Kouga and Kagome. The girl had been _very_ easy on the eyes but seemed too shy for his tastes and the guy seemed too confident for his own good. Tossing a glance over at the photographer, he had to do a double-take. After looking closely, he saw that the shutter-bug he had spied looked a lot like that Kagome girl but her eyes and the way she carried herself seemed different. Putting on a smirk, he went over to talk to her.

At this moment, Kagome was walking past where pictures were being taken when something or rather some_one_ caught her eye. _'Kikyou?'

* * *

_**A/N: The cooking challenge took up a good portion of this chapter and I was just wondering if I should continue with one-page cooking sections every now and then. Ooh and...reviews pleasee? **


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